BF SKINNER & ROLLO MAY - Assignment Example

BF SKINNER & ROLLO MAY Freedom of choice is an important part of being human beings and it gives them their own destinies. Everyone is unique and has an inborn drive to realize their full potential. Human behaviour is connected to inner feelings and should also be looked at not only from the eyes of an observer, but also those of the person “behaving”. It should not be deterministic and neither focussed on reinforcement of stimuli-response nor the unconscious irrational and instinctive forces.

Proper assessment of human behaviour should be done by studying humans and not animals (May, 1961). Humanists emphasize more on the inner life: inner will, choice, courage, freedom, experiences, feelings, will, growth and self-actualization. Determinists focus more on the outer life: observable behaviour, shaping and control and external modes of reinforcement. Determinists also argue that personality and inner life are works of fiction to account for reality that is primarily external (May, 1961).

Human beings have free will. This is also known as personal agency and it’s the choices we make in our lives, how we decide to live it and the consequences of our actions (Rogers, 1959). People are also basically good. Everyone has an innate need to make themselves and the world better. Mental and social problems causes deviant behaviour from this natural predisposition. Humans have the capacity to overcome pain, despair and hardships. The basic motive is usually growth and development and hence everyone seeks to develop and continuously enhance themselves.

Human being are profoundly different from animals. They are conscious beings capable of thought, language and reasoning. Feelings matter enormously in humans. Identifying them, understanding and accepting them is one of the major aims of human therapy (Rogers, 1959).ReferencesMay, R. (1961). Existential psychology. New York: Random House.Rogers, C. R. (1959). A Theory of Therapy, Personality and Interpersonal Relationships as Developed in the Client-centered Framework. Psychology: A Study of a Science. Vol. 3: Formulations of the Person and the Social Context , p. 415-422.